K-pop Star Hyeme Accused of Deceiving Fan Out of SGD60,300; Faces Lawsuit for Fraud

Hyeme, the lead singer of the new K-pop girl group Black Swan has been sued for fraud after a male fan accused her of cheating him of his money. According to Korean media Dispatch, the fan loaned Hyeme a total of more than 50mil won (SGD60,300) over the past year and a half.

When the fan asked for repayment, she disappeared. The singer started borrowing money from him in April 2019. The duo got to know each other through Instagram in December 2018 and became fast friends.

The 24-year-old singer told the fan in April last year that she needed money urgently and asked to borrow 5mil won (SGD6,039). The fan declined to lend her money but she sent him a message the next day. “Please help my mum. I am not after your money. It’s just that it is not very convenient for me to approach others. I am asking you for a loan because we get along very well. I hope you don’t mind.”

A few days later when they met up for drinks, she asked him for another loan and he had no choice but to transfer the money. The male fan revealed that Hyeme used to live in the group’s dormitory in Seoul but she wanted to move out as she did not like staying with the rest of the Black Swan members.

In June 2019, Hyeme rented an apartment and the male fan not only paid for the deposit which amounted to NT$560,000 (SGD26,300) but also helped her with her monthly rent of more than 900,000 won (SGD1,085).

The fan estimated that he paid over 11.35 mil won (SGD14,000) in rent alone the past year. Hyeme became more brazen and claimed that she did not receive her salary. So she asked for small loans, borrowing sums ranging from 20,000 won (SGD24) to 100,000 won (SGD120) each time. The fan claimed to have transferred around 18mil won (SGD21,700) into her account between May 2019 and May 2020, and he had 212 receipts to show for it.

In five months, Hyeme allegedly racked up to more than 12.8mil won (SGD15,500) in credit card bills. In total, the fan claimed that she has borrowed more than 50mil won (SGD60,300) from him. He did not think much of the loans until he found out that she was squandering his money and seeing other men. When he asked her to repay him 5mil won (SGD6,300), she agreed but later ghosted him.

Hyeme moved out of the apartment, changed her contact number and removed her Instagram account. On October 26, the male fan sued her for fraud. He has been suspended from work and faces financial woes.

Hyeme, initially introduced to the showbiz scene in 2015 with girl group Rania, made headlines again with the band’s transformation to Black Swan. However, it appears she has since departed from the band amidst this controversy.